


NOVEMBER LIMA ALPHA

by fulcrumstardust



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Military, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Ben Solo and his dog, Captain Ben Solo, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fleet Week, Flip is the dog, Go reat it, It's good I've heard, Let them fuck in peace, Marines, OTP You're Not Alone, PWP, The Author Regrets Nothing, War Dogs references, a bit of angst, but with feelings, they're happy together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-25
Updated: 2019-05-25
Packaged: 2020-03-14 17:16:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,483
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18952501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fulcrumstardust/pseuds/fulcrumstardust
Summary: Captain Ben Solo is a Marine ubering on the USS Kearsarge for Fleet Week.Rey is set to meet with her long-time best friend in NYC, but he doesn't come alone.She can't take her eyes off of the stranger. They need the warmth. They find it and unravel the storm inside.





	NOVEMBER LIMA ALPHA

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Semperfidani](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Semperfidani/gifts).



> A birthday fic, I hope you'll like it and it's everything you hoped for! ❤️ 
> 
> PSA: I hadn't had time to beta yet, but it will be done. Enjoy the rough carving I guess?

 

**NOVEMBER LIMA ALPHA**

_ Detect my sudden existence on your sonar _

_ You feel the echo _

_ Electrify the resistance in your broken heart _

_ And burn it up, oh _

 — [ Vienna Teng](https://youtu.be/NWJE52G6mXo)

✯

“So, how long since you last saw him?”

“Hmm,” Rey paused to wonder. “Almost two years I think.”

“More important,” Rose interrupted, demanding. “How hot is he?”

The young woman almost choked on her iced coffee while trying to suppress a laugh. Next to her, the two sisters exchanged a telepathic look. Paige didn’t seemed surprised by the question, and neither was Rey, in all honesty. She gave it a quick thought, keeping on walking the crowded streets of New York City under a clear sky.

“Like, hot  _ hot, _ ” she finally decided with a smirk.

“Per-fect.”

“Are you trying to use Rey’s friend for plotting your revenge?” Paige asked, frowning at her little sister.

“Damn right, I am!” Rose said, enthusiastically clapping her hands. “I need the hottest Marines I can find to send a good fuck-you-asshole breakup picture to that shithead.”

“Well, Fleet Week got you cover, sis.” Rey nodded. “Pick and choose!”

“I  _ love  _ today already!”

Making their way through the people gathered around for the celebration, the three women kept on laughing and talking in good spirit. The day had, indeed, been great. They had left Hudson River Park earlier, after watching the Parade of Ships and spent part of the afternoon enjoying the good May weather near Manhattan.

Rey checked her phone, leading to rendez-vous point, while the sun was starting to descend behind the city skyline with a crimson shade. Scanning the loud crowd, she searched for a familiar face among the sea of strangers casually pacing Lower East Side in approach of the Happy Hour. There were a lot more uniforms than she had anticipated, making Rose very happy to be here. The atmosphere was warm and festive, contagious even. For Rey, who lived and worked in NYC and couldn’t be bothered by many things, Fleet Week remained an event she liked to attend each year. Mostly because it gave her an opportunity to celebrate the end of the semester and try to reunite her friends— _ especially  _ the one she didn’t get to see the rest of the year.

“Finn!” she almost yelled upon seeing him on the sidewalk.

Rey ran to him eagerly, smiling from one ear to the other, and jumped on the man just as he was turning to her. He caught her by the waist, her feet leaving the ground for a quick second as the pair exchanged a warm embrace.

“Well, damn! Nice to see you, peanut. You just ruined my chances with that lady over there!”

“Shut up, stupid!” Rey laughed, taking a step back to look at him.

She was so used to see him through a screen that it almost felt unreal to be able to touch him again. She squeezed his forearm affectionately, her eyes creasing with joy only to match the radiant smile she had to offer to her friend. Cladded in his dress uniform—solemn khaki short-sleeve button-up and sky blue trousers, he looked like a million bucks, and most often acted accordingly.

“Been way too long,” Finn said. “I forgot how short you are.”

“I am  _ not, _ ” Rey protested with a small pat on the arm. “Anyway, this is the friends I talked to you about! Paige and Rose.”

“Oh yup, I heard a lot about you, ladies.”

As the two sisters joined the rest of them, their group grew bigger in the middle of the street. Paige waved a friendly hand with a genuine smile, while Rose went in for the hug—causing Rey to chuckle a bit.

“We heard a lot about you as well,” the younger Tico said teasingly.

“Everything bad she said, that’s not true!” Finn smiled tentatively.

“Oh yeah, it is,” Rey snorted. “Anyways—hmm hmm.”

“Right, my bad.”

Catching the cue, the man finally took upon himself to introduce the rest of his fellow comrades. Finn had brought a real party on the ground with him—three men and a woman, all Marines, all waiting for basic civilities with various degrees of patience. The blonde woman seemed ready to bypass him if he didn’t hurry up.

“So, let me—this is Poe.”

“Hi, I’m Rey.”

“Yeah, I know,” the man named Poe smiled back at her. There was something charming about him that made Rey feel at ease almost immediately, which was uncommon enough for her to notice. She wondered what  _ exactly  _ he knew about her, and how long the two men had known each other. Finn often talked about his buddies when they skyped, but not always by names. It was an understanding between them, because one day, a name could come to be missing and he didn’t want to have to talk about it.

“This is Hux,” Finn pursued, gesturing a hand to another of his friends.

“Hi!”

“Hey,” Hux nodded slightly.

“Tallie.” The blonde woman unfolded her arms to greet them with a smile. “And Captain Solo. I mean… Err— _ Ben  _ ?”

Finn appeared to be distraught by the familiarity, leaving Rey to wonder why her friend was possibly hanging out with a commissioned officer. That was—weird. Taking a good look at him, the man didn’t appear to be sure himself, but Rey lost that train of thought almost instantly, dazed.

He was tall—taller than anyone else, and the white barracks cover on his head made sure to emphasize that fact. But Rey had her attention fully focused on the deep brown shade that were his eyes, looking back to her with an expression she couldn’t quite grasp. For what seemed like a small eternity, she couldn’t look away. She felt both stupid and incredibly unbothered by everything around her, for she would gladly continue to detail _ Captain Solo  _ in silence, mesmerized by the weight of his gaze and the soul inside of it.

“You’re having a heatstroke or what?” Finn laughed while poking her in the ribs.

“What?”

Ripping her eyes away was painful, but catching the look on Rose’s face was downright embarrassing.  _ Oh boy. _ Luckily enough, her friend chose to lend her a helping hand, for which she was beyond grateful.

“So, Happy Hour?” Rose said to distract the general attention.

“Rah!”

“We have six hours of lib, so no time to waste! Let’s go!”

And so they did.

“Where are you posted?” Paige casually asked, igniting the conversation with Tallie as the group started to move towards their destination.

“Norfolk. I'm on deployment on the  _ Lone Warrior  _ right now,” the woman replied.

“What do you do there?”

“I’m a helicopter pilot, same as Poe.”

“Ah, pilots are my fav!” Paige smiled, brushing back her jet black hair.

“Of course,” Finn interjected with a mocking sound.

“What’s your job?” the other Tico asked curiously.

“I’m a mecha.  _ I  _ make sure those fuckers can do their job, but no one is telling me I’m their fav!”

They all laughed—for different reasons.

The group was taking almost all the space available on the sidewalk and the number of uniforms didn’t fail to capture the interest of some passer-by. Rey was thrilled to have her best friend back with her for a couple of hours, no matter how quick the reunion would pass. She would probably be able to catch him a few more times during the week, before he had to go back to Norfolk with the rest of them, and then—overseas.

Their designated hangout in NYC was a familiar bar on Rivington Street—the dark painted door marking the corner of the street never failed to welcome them in. The  _ Marshall Stack  _ was packed with people during the Fleet Week, buzzing with loud conversations and cheering sounds of music and beer bottles all night. Rey had carefully planned it though. She gestured to the busy bartender upon entering with her little army, and made way towards the back of the establishment. A table had been reserved for them between an old jukebox and the personnel lobby. They were only missing two barstools, but most of the customers were standing anyways.

Rey shoved her bag on a shelve above the well-used table as everyone settled around.

“What does everyone want to drink? I’m going to order at the bar,” she told them.

It took a few minutes for her to gather the information, while they decided they most likely wanted to order some sort of food as well.

“Alright,” Rey laughed. “I’m going to need another set of arms.”

She fully expected Finn to come with her, but someone closer naturally made a move to escort her. Not that she complained about it.

Without his peaked cap, she had a better opportunity to study Captain Solo’s face. He had a slight frown that appeared to be frozen on his forehead, but it was… enticing. Rey reached the edge of the wooden bar and probed her elbows on it, trying to catch the attention of the overworked personnel. While they waited, she eyed the man next to her with a pinch of nervousness in the pit of her stomach.

“So…,” she trailed off. “Is that okay if I call you Ben?”

He seemed surprised. Rey couldn’t help but notice the way his eyes focused on her, making sure to give her his full attention while she was addressing him. She liked that. The Marine was standing so still, arms folded behind his back, that he looked impossibly out of place inside the  _ Marshall. _ Once again, Rey wondered how the captain had come to join her friend on their little venture.

“Yes, sure,” he finally told her.

Rey was suddenly  _ glad  _ she was resting on the bartop, because otherwise, she might’ve slumbered just a little. The sound of that deep, rich voice was everything she wanted to hear about for the rest of the evening—starting right now.

“Are you with Finn’s unit? I can’t recall if he ever mentioned your name.”

She somehow caught a trace of uneasiness on his face, and she didn’t know if it was because of her or the question. Somewhere in the back of her brain, Rey tried to shut down her impulse. She didn’t want to make him uncomfortable by any means, but the man was alluring in a way she had never come across before. The urge to uncover the mystery was starting to itch her badly.

“No, I’m just ubering via Norfolk,” he said. “They sent me for the show.”

“For the show?” Rey curiously asked, eager to hear him talk some more.

“Ah. I’m a K9 handler. We have a demonstration tomorrow.”

“Really? Oh, awesome! What’s the name of your dog?”

To her surprise, he seemed taken aback by the question. Surely, she couldn’t be the only one wanting to know that.  _ Of course  _ she wanted to know the dog’s name, who wouldn’t? Nonetheless, Captain Solo— Ben, finally unfolded his arms with a barely noticeable hesitation.

“I have a picture,” he said. “If you want to see, that is.”

“Yeah, of course!” Rey exclaimed with unrestrained enthusiasm.

She found herself obnoxious, but she couldn’t fake disinterest over the matter—not even to appear cooler than she was. Most people had trouble to deal with her personality. She was too blunt, too honest, too wild, just—too  _ much. _ She often wished to learn how to compose herself, to behave properly in social situations like this, but she had always been an all-or-nothing type of person. And right now, she was feeling pretty  _ all  _ in the company of Ben. There was just something about him and—

“Oh my god!” she swooned. “He’s  _ too  _ cute! Wait, he’s a he or—?”

“Yes. His name’s Flip.”

“I love him! Best Marine,” Rey smiled, returning her attention to Ben’s phone. “Send me that pic, I need a new lock screen!”

She said that with a joking tone, but the fluttering on her chest was maybe taking it way more seriously than she intended. To give herself a composure, she ran a quick hand through her brown hair. The other was still resting over Ben’s forearm, exactly where she had bent to look over his phone. She was more than reluctant to move it now.

The contact felt intimate. His skin was hot to the touch, there was a tension running through him. When she returned her gaze to him once more, Rey tried  _ very  _ hard not to look at his lips too much.  _ Oh wow, we’re going there already?  _ Yep, affirmative, she was.

“Where is he now?” she heard herself asking while her brain was dissolving into this almost-stranger’s eyes.

“He’s waiting on  _ Kearsarge. _ Couldn’t bring him ashore today.”

“Right. Bet he’s missing you, though. I would.”

_ Holy Hell, woman?  _ The captain was dumbstruck for a moment and it was the most unpredictable reaction from them all. That man didn’t seem like someone you surprised a whole lot—not anymore. He sure looked like he had seen all the world and still came back to port. Rey was certain she would’ve loved to hear all about it. She wanted to uncover the lining of his memories, the things he was made of. Maybe another day. Maybe—?

For the first time since she had met him, a shy smile tugged the line of his mouth upwards. Ben looked down and brought his eyes back to her the next second.  _ Don’t look away. _

“I still wanted to have a sight of New York,” he said. “Never been here before. Lintra suggested I joined the party.”

“Lintra, that is…,” Rey tentatively asked while looking over to their table.

“Sorry, Tallie.”

“Got it!” she smiled. “Did you then—had a sight? Or you just came here to drink with loud people and regret your decision?”

“We did a little tour before your friend went looking for you.”

“Awesome! I could’ve shown you around if Finn had told me.”

“You’re living here then?” he questioned.

“Yes! Born and raised. Where are you from by the way? I really can’t place your accent.”

“Anchorage, ma’am.”

“No fucking way!” Rey said, eyes widening. “That’s a  _ long  _ way home, wow!”

“Alright, folks!” the bartender suddenly interrupted. “Sorry for the wait, what can I get you?”

✯

Rose had her picture. And a few others—probably as many as the number of tequila shots she took down in the process. Clasped between Finn, Poe and Hux, she called it the Revenge Trinity and hit  _ send  _ with a highly satisfied sound and a devilish grin.

Paige would’ve usually commented on the seemingly unhealthy way Rose was dealing with her breakup, but turned out the other Tico was too busy talking to Tallie to notice the shenanigans of her little sister. Rey noticed  _ both  _ of her friends.

She took another sip of beer and chuckled to herself. As a waitress was coming back to discharge empty plates and leave a new round of pretzels on their table, Rey took the opportunity to get out of her way.

“Here,” she offered Poe her seat for a turn, as they were still short on barstools.

Instead, Rey came to rest behind Finn, listening to the conversation while leaning over her friend’s shoulder.

“C’mon man, how long?”

“How long what?” Rey curiously asked.

“Oh, they wanna know who has gone the longest without actual sex,” Rose filled her in bluntly.

“What for?” she laughed.

“I don’t know, don’t ask me!”

“Okay, okay. Five,” Finn confessed with a solemn hand to his heart. “Last leave.”

“Same,” Poe told them.

“Aye, two.”

Following the confession of Hux, the other men jumped in with an over-the-top reaction fueled by the ambient level of tequila.

“Two? What two?!” Finn’s voice mirrored the incredulity on his face. “With  _ who? _ We were in the middle of the fucking ocean two months ago!”

“Little shit!” Poe erupted in laughter. “You hit that Navy chick, didn’t you? The one that wanted to throw you overboard? I can’t believe it! After you pressed her balls for three fucking months and she let you slip in!”

“She was happy she did, trust me,” the man snorted.

“Can’t believed Gingerfox beat us at it! Such disgrace.”

“Boo boo, poor you,” Rey mocked them. “You wanna know how long since  _ I  _ had sex?”

While the attention shifted on her abruptly, the young woman had second thoughts about her intervention.  _ Whoops _ . She sighed heavily and shook her head.

“Actually, I won’t say it out loud or I’ll start crying. That’s  _ how  _ long, guys! Where’s my consolation prize, ugh?”

“Damn, what are you waiting for? Look at you, peanut! You just have to smile and do that shit with your hair and the deal is done.”

“That’s what I’m always telling her,” Rose nodded in agreement.

“I don’t know about that… but I’ll try  _ that shit  _ with my hair, thanks!”

“Flick it,” Finn looked for confirmation over to Poe, a hand in the air. “Yeah, that’s what I meant!”

Both men went on flicking imaginary hair at unison, earning more laughs around their table. Rey pushed herself off of Finn’s shoulder, shaking her head with an amused expression all over her face. The next moment, she was catching an unreadable reflection on Ben’s eyes and she immediately forgot about the trivial conversation. He was standing back to the wall and watched her closely as she approached. She came to settle down next to him in the dim light, enable to refrain herself from seeking his company.

“Are you asking yourself why you’re hanging out with such stupid people?” she smirked at him. “Regretting much?”

The man looked down to his feet with a weird smile. He hadn’t said much during the past hour. Understandably, he looked older than the rest of them. Rey had hoped that he would loosen up a bit after a while, but now she just felt the need to include him more aggressively. Or just—to force him to warm up to  _ her. _

“I’m not a funny guy,” he finally told her with a self-deprecating frown.

“Is that so?” Rey raised a questioning eyebrow to him. “I could take that as a challenge, beware.”

“What does that even mean?” he joked lightly.

“See, you’re laughing already. Seem pretty funny to me.”

Something crossed his face without Rey being able to catch it. She felt regrets deep in her chest. The young woman parted her lips slightly, pondering, thinking about the things she could try to say to him. What would the best approach be? She wanted him to have a good time with them. He looked like he needed it—more than any of them.

The taste of her last shot lingered on her tongue with a salty note. She wondered what his own lips would taste like. Maybe if he would look at her…

“Would you mind if I come to see you tomorrow?” Rey asked. “I’d like to meet Flip.”

Ben went rigid, more than his usual stance, but then relaxed again. The loud chatter going on around them allowed him to drag the on-going silence without being too awkward. Rey patiently waited for him to find an answer he was comfortable with, detailing his profile attentively.

“Ah. My dog always beats me at popularity contests,” he finally said.

Ben turned his head to look at her. She found that the bitterness of his words wasn’t matched by his dark eyes. She thought she understood and smiled.

“I mean… yeah, no offense, but have you  _ seen  _ him? I’d take a bullet for him.”

She immediately wished she could take back her words. Her eyebrows draw a painful expression on her features and she placed a soft hand over his forearm—again.

“Shit, that came out so wrong!” Rey quickly said. “I’m so sorry, Ben. I don’t think things through sometimes.”

“It’s alright. Don’t worry about it.”

“It’s really not. I feel terrible.”

Rey bit her lip, anxious, but he simply shook his head to dismiss it.

“Please, don’t. I don’t think I had an actual conversation with someone in months. It’s nice to talk without that… dread.”

She almost heard him exhale with relief and she couldn’t fathom a single reason why nobody would want to  _ talk  _ to him. Or maybe it was the other way around, which meant… Without even noticing, she gave him a gentle squeeze of the hand.

“Yeah? We can go somewhere else if you want to talk without having to scream at each other,” she then offered. “I mean, I can’t bring you to my dorm but I know a Japanese open all night. Amazing curry.”

“To your  _ dorm  _ ?” Ben picked up with a confused frown. “How old are you?”

“Don’t panic, I’m legally drinking. I’m just broke.”

Seeing that the sheer look of terror he was failing to hide wouldn’t die down, Rey provided information.

“I’m twenty-three.”

That wasn’t the answer he had anticipated. She couldn’t tell what he thought about it and it made her nervous.

“You sound—older,” he said after a bit, diverting his gaze again.

_ Don’t you look away from me. _

“I don’t know if there is a compliment somewhere in that or not,” Rey laughed to dissipate the matter. “If you’re a captain, you must be what, thirty?”

“Thirty-two.”

Her smile returned. She shifted closer to him without even noticing. Both of them would pretend it was with the only intent to hear each other better in spite of the background noise. Rey heard him perfectly clear way before that, but wouldn’t argue.

“Eh, I’m good at this! But you know what, you do actually sound younger.”

“Well, fuck me,” he growled. “I hope my unit disagrees with you.”

The young woman tilted her head, the corners of her eyes crinkling with amusement.

“I bet you don’t sound like that with your guys, though.”

“Maybe not.”

Her fingers hadn’t left the hot skin of his arm, coming up to rest just above the joint of his elbow. She wanted to drag them further up. She wanted to feel his chest too, and the heart that was beating under the net khaki uniform. She wanted to bypass the resistance and uncover the beauty marks that were surely making echo to the ones on his face.

“So, curry—?”

His eyes widened a little with actual surprise.

“You were been serious?”

“Yes, why?”

Ben looked over to his left.

“What about your friends?”

“Well,” Rey articulated, following his gaze. “Rose is bonding with three men at once and Paige is very much busy eye-fucking the hot lady so, I guess I can leave them be for one hour or two. You said you were going back around midnight?”

“Yes.”

“Plenty of time. Do you wanna go or not?”

Her chest incredibly tightened while she was waiting for his answer but suddenly, the night was awakening for her.

“Kill.”

✯

“How was it?”

“Best thing I ate in a long long while,” Ben said with appreciation.

“See! Told you,” Rey smiled brightly. “Maz makes the best curry. Helps the tequila down too.”

“Certainly did.”

They both looked at each other with an amused expression.

The small restaurant was lit by faded yellow lamps on dark walls. Inside, the familiar scent of fried food and fresh noodle was comforting to Rey, and the closest she had from a somewhat-home. She toyed with a red paper napkin between her fingers, unable to tear her attention away from Ben. She could feel their legs brushing under the small square table each time one of them moved on their seats. She liked it very much. A light flush had spread to her cheeks, whether being because of the spicy food or the warm feeling inside her chest was up to debate.

“How is life on the USS  _ Kearsarge  _ ?”

“Cramped,” Ben joked.

“I bet.”

“Repetitive. But it’s nice sometimes, knowing exactly what to expect. It’s—different.”

“From where you were before?” Rey asked softly.

“Yes.”

Taking the cue, the young woman pressed her leg more firmly against his.

“We don’t have to talk about that, you know,” she offered.

“I don’t mind. It’s just—”

Ben went silent and let his attention drift away, fixing a plastic plant that had seen better days across the half-empty room.

“Just what?” Rey whispered with a gentle voice.

“Don’t feel like making you run away.”

“Me?” she snorted. “I’m the most stubborn bitch around, try me. I’m not going anywhere.”

She crossed her arms over her chest to punctuate the declaration. Ben seemed to assert her without a word, trying to determine if he wanted to engage in this line of fire or not. There was something about him that made her brace for impact. No, she wouldn’t run away. If he was willing to share the stories he had buried with him, she would listen. If he wouldn’t talk about it, she would lit another fire for him.

“I’ve reapplied for another tour,” he finally told her with a cautious tone. “Will be my third one.”

“That’s… a lot of war for just one man,” Rey said, feeling her voice falter a little.

“Maybe.”

“Are you going back for your men?”

“Would you keep on looking at me like that if I’d say yes?”

“I want you to say something that you believe to be true,” she simply asked.

“I’m going back because I don’t know how to function here,” Ben confessed with a painful expression. “Not anymore. Sounds horrible, isn’t it?”

Rey finally stopped tearing her napkin apart. She looked at him as if she was trying to see past his body to penetrate his brain—which was impossible, but she still tried nonetheless. She lost herself for a bit into his warm brown eyes and made a move to brush his fingers with her own. He didn’t remove his hand from her reach.

“Sounds like someone who’s a stranger to himself,” Rey decided. “That’s not horrible, though. There are way worse things in life than that, Ben. At least, you can still be found.”

“ _ There, _ ” he pointed. “You sound older again.”

“Is that a good thing or not?” she smiled.

“I think so.”

“Good.”

Rey intertwined their fingers without leaving his gaze. His thumb brushed over her skin gently, causing her chest to rise and fall deeper under her black summer dress. She was starting to burn on her chair, and it had nothing to do with the food. A small shiver followed the curve of her back to end behind her neck, right where she wanting him to press his lips.

“When are you going back?”

“Beginning of June.”

So, that was actually—right after next week. Rey felt a crushing sensation punching her in the guts, which was uncalled for. She was in no position to react like that, but she still did. It took her a moment to internalize her emotions, making sure she wasn’t projecting any of her own issues onto him. He didn’t need to take them with him where he was going. Instead, she squeezed his hand more firmly and offered him another smile.

“Lucky me you made a stop in NYC, Mister Anchorage.”

“I’m glad for Fleet Week now.”

“I bet I can make you even more appreciative of it.”

Following her words, an unspoken energy started to electrify the air around them, enveloping them both in a world of their own. Hesitant, Ben lowered his voice to speak, as if he didn’t want for her to hear it.

“Don’t you want to—go back to your friends?”

“Yes,” Rey nodded. “I’m going to use to restroom first. It’s on the lower floor, first door to the left after the staircase.”

As she spoke, the young woman slowly slid the strap of her handbag over her shoulder and made a move to stand up. She never lost Ben’s eyes from sight, making sure he perfectly understood. He did, of course. Something was going ablaze behind his pupils, cracking the apparent calmness of his mask. Rey touched his shoulder softly and looked down at him.

“You don’t have to. Only if you want to.”

She then walked away, hoping he  _ wanted _ to.

Rey made her way down the stairs without looking back. The lower floor was silent, used for storage and delivery through a back door. She had worked for Maz a handful of summers when she was still in high school and knew her way around the place. She also knew no one would come looking for her in the employees' bathroom. No one but Ben, hopefully.

She entered the small room and closed the door behind her. She was greeted by her own reflection on the small mirror hanging above a single sink. Rey placed her bag on the cabinet and stared at herself, her heart suddenly pounding loudly in her chest. Her cheeks were stained with colors, her eyes wild and longing.

She opened the first two buttons of her dress on her chest, trying to still herself. The white flowery pattern on the black fabric moved with every of her breath. She waited for a few minutes in silence, alone, tasting the anticipation on her lips, fearing that he wouldn't come at all.

Finally, the door opened behind her and her next breath got caught in the back of her throat. Rey looked at him in the mirror, observing every of his reactions while he was shutting the door again after him. The rigid uniform filled the room with his presence. She met his gaze, dark, focused, flooding with a new intention. Somehow, he still looked unsure.

Very slowly, Rey turned around and took a step towards him. It brought her millimeters away from his chest. She felt the heat of his body radiating to hers through layers of clothes. She extended an arm behind him and let her fingers grazed over the door lock with a small metallic  _ click. _ Then, she looked up to him.  

“Listen,” Ben forced out with a low voice. “I don’t—do  _ that  _ normally.”

“Me neither.”

She could tell he was trying to tell her something—trying to talk himself out of it as well. Rey didn’t believed it to be a bad idea, not as bad as he wanted it to be.

“Maybe we shouldn’t, maybe—”

“Maybe you should stop thinking so damn much, Captain.”

Ben effectively shut up for a few seconds, but it wasn’t so much about what she had said, very much more because of her hand on his chest. She caressed the soft fabric with the palm of her hands, sliding to her torso. Ben quickly caught her wrists without applying any pressure to it. He looked at loss for words and Rey couldn’t detach her attention from his pink lips, dying to know how he would taste between hers.

“Alright, yeah but—I can’t fuck you like… Rey—”

“What is it?” she patiently asked.

“I can’t play stupid.”

“Well, are you clean? I am, and I can assure you I won’t make you a kid while you’re gone. There, problems solved. Shall we now?”

Once again, Ben seemed dumbstruck by her bluntness. She would’ve thought he would be familiar to that, being military, but maybe not with women. Maybe she should’ve been blushing and embarrassed by her offer to fuck a complete stranger in a public bathroom, but she couldn’t bring herself to be for the life of her. Not tonight, not with him.

“Because I think we really should,” Rey whispered, rising on her tiptoes.

She slid an arm around his broad shoulders and dragged him down until their chests met. She was  _ almost  _ kissing him, her breath brushing over his parted lips while she inhaled the scent of his body like oxygen. But she was still waiting for him to decide if he wanted to. She wanted him to let go of the storm inside of his mind. She wanted for him to let everything loose and to hold on to her.

“God, are you for real?” Ben murmured against her lips.

“Yes, Sir.”

He slid his arms behind her and held her impossibly close, as if he feared she would slip from his reach. Rey placed a hand on his face while he was breaking the final distance, bringing their bodies in a warm reunion after a lifetime of separation. The kiss set everything alight in her veins, traveling her entire being with a ravaging effect. She wasn’t able to breathe anymore while mapping the contours of his lips with her owns. She felt the urgency, the need, the envy, the reverence and everything in between. She felt the cold being pushed away and the fire beginning to spread everywhere.

Rey quickly lost everything but the feel of his imposing body on her. She opened her mouth, searching for a taste of his tongue and their breaths loosely mixed with a soft moan from her.  _ Maybe it was him. _ She was holding onto his shoulders so hard that she probably creased the fabric of his regulation shirt. When he bit her lower lip, she whimpered against him and almost lost her balance.

Ben grabbed her by the waist. She took a step back and hit the sink cabinet, trapped between the furniture and the weight of his massive body. Instinctively, she spread her legs wider for him to anchor himself down. His hands fell to the side of her, caressing the small curves of her hips to reach her thighs. A shiver crawled over her with the touch of his calloused hands on her nude skin, reaching under the hem of her dress, sliding upwards.

Rey ran her hands through his short hair, wishing she could grab it, yank his head back and kiss every inch of his neck for hours. She wanted to uncover all of his body piece by piece. She wanted to watch him a million times while she would make him come undone over and over again under her touch. She wanted to know every spasm of his body, every moan of his dark voice—the sleepless nights, the starless nights and the golden sun rising into his eyes by the morning.

She left his lips to kiss the soft spot under his right ear, the smell of his hot skin melting her brain away. She was dragging her nails over his arms and he groaned under the touch. Ben grabbed her legs and lifted her with a rapid movement, pushing her ass on top of the countertop without effort. She instinctively wrapped her legs around him to draw him closer to her, eager to suppress any distance, to merge everything about them. Their hips connected roughly with a rustle of fabric. Rey sighed heavily, feeling him hardening between her legs, right where she wanted him to be. She wanted this so  _ badly  _ all of a sudden, as if her own body had finally awaken from a long and dry winter.

“Ben—” she moaned mindlessly.

Her next breath transformed into a soft cry when he pressed a hand to her covered breast. His impossibly long fingers were palming her everywhere at once and she wanted to tell him— _ tear my clothes apart, who cares, who needs them, I want your skin against my skin.  _ But she still needed clothes after that, and so did he.

Rey starting to unbuttoned his shirt with steady hands, methodical and dexterous. She was sure of her gestures, she reached his abdomen and felt his hard muscles contracting under the pressure of her palms. She yanked the fabric from his belt, pushed everything aside, grabbed his undershirt and slid under— _ I want your skin. _

A hand run through her hair. He kissed her throat, started to breathe heavily when he reached the curve of her neck and Rey went for the buckle of his belt. She wanted to spend every minute available enjoying the connection of their bodies together. She didn’t mind the foreplay, when she had time—tonight she hadn’t. She hadn’t time to gently learn Ben, she hadn’t time to get to know him before he had to leave to the other side of the world. This wasn’t the place for delicate affection, but it was the perfect moment for passion. And passion she wanted— _ all of it, all of you, all of me. _

Ben placed a hand to her jaw to kiss her again. She obliged him, eyes closed, his mental image brightly burning in every corner of her brain, claiming every empty space.

He then slid his hands back to her thighs, tentatively, almost shyly. She arched under the touch, waiting for him to make a move. He brushed the inner part of her and wetness starting to pool between her legs, begging for attention.

“Please, touch me,” she whispered.

His next breath morphed into a groan. Rey opened her eyes just to captured the expression on his face when he felt how much she wanted him. She barely refrained from whimpering as he drags his right hand to her center and pressed through the fabric of her laced underwear to rub her. She almost forgot what she was actually doing—undoing really.

Ben pushed the hem of her dress higher with an imperious move, letting it rest over her hips on a silky flow of material. His hand found its way past the barrier of her underwear and discovered her skin, her warmth, her pulse. She moaned softly, licked her swollen lips, moved her hips because she couldn’t manage to stand still under his fingertips. Every single cell of her was feeling incredibly grateful for him. _ So good. _

“You’re just so—”

He never finished his sentence. Rey finally managed to get rid of his belt and impatiently opened up his pants, just enough to be able to reach him. She pressed her fingers to him, traced the contour of him, returned the favor as they were edging over a dangerous line. His breath was caught in his throat and he trembled under her touch. Her free hand fell to his lower back, under the weight of his opened shirt. She felt the thin layer of sweat covering his skin as he was burning up for her.

Rey freed him from his boxers, hard and sensitive, anticipating the feel of him inside of her with a new fever. She rose a hand to his lips and let him kissed every single one of her fingers in awe.

“With your tongue,” she asked gently.

She watched closely, mesmerized, as Ben licked her fingers attentively while his own were buried between her folds. She then used this same hand to release some tension from him, guiding her wet fingers up and down his length with a light pressure. Her rhythm was unsteady, just as much as his own. They were getting impatient and met again with heavy kisses and loud gasps inside of the small room.

When she thought she couldn’t take it anymore without breaking, Rey quickly grabbed his wrist to still his hand, already feeling her inner walls pulsing in blissful agony. Ben looked at her with a confused frown, his eyes searching for hers in the poor lighting.

“What—?” he breathed out almost fearfully.

“Nothing. I’m just so close,” Rey whispered between dry lips.

“Well,  _ good  _ ?” he almost chuckled with a sound of relief.

“I want you inside first.”

While she spoke, she managed to raise her hips long enough to slid her underwear down her legs. She couldn’t pass her knees though, but Ben finished the job for her. She saw him sliding the black lace inside one of his pockets but said nothing and closed her legs around him, claiming ownership of his personal space.

Her back was hitting the mirror and he bent over her a little, just to find her lips again. The heat between them was driving her mad. His length rubbed against her a few times and she grabbed his shoulders desperately. Feeling like she couldn’t take any teasing anymore, Rey made it very clear to him with a movement of hips.

She gently put her hands to his face and locked eyes with him.

“Don’t look away,” she breathed out.

He didn’t.

Ben slid into her with a slow pressure and she let her next breath unraveled her voice for him to hear. The slight burn of his presence inside of her spread to all of her extremities like a small discharge of electricity. He stayed still, keeping his own need in check, waiting for her. Rey kissed his lips, once, twice. She kissed his jaw and returned to his lips, noses touching, lips parting, hands pleading. She caught the spark of craving in his eyes—the closeness, the familiarity, all of the things she didn’t have time to have tonight.

She rolled her hips, invited him closer inside of her body, made him moan her name once. And then all over again.

“Fuck, Rey—”

She dug her fingers deep into the skin of his strong arms. She didn’t care if it showed tomorrow, she didn’t care if  _ he  _ left marks all over her skin. She didn’t mind to be his just for a moment.

She let him set a pace, never taking her eyes off of him. She was throbbing from the inside, so close to find release in his arms. Her heart was hammering in her chest, just to match the pulse in her veins—dopamine, rainstorm, rogue wave.

Ben pulled on her hips, dragging her closer to the edge to meet his thrusts. She held into his shoulders, around his neck. She parted her lips, forced an inspiration down her throat, whispered his name. The weight of him was coming down to cumulate between her thighs, where their bodies collided—crash of molecules, new arrangement of frontiers.

Rey pressed her legs more firmly around him, all of her muscles contracting while she was chasing the fall. She couldn’t help but hollow her stomach under the feeling of him going in and out inside of her, pulling him deeper and deeper without being able to control it. She cried out with a strained voice when she came, so hard, lost between his masculine perfume and the signature of his presence. It lasted longer than she had ever, involuntary spasming around him while he fucked her through it without stopping. And that was everything she wanted, him—inside of her, his voice in her ear, the hint of his pleasure.

He was tired and burning and alive and hungry and done.

She wondered if she could’ve told the moment he would come, but she did. She did in the way he searched for her neck and though she wanted to say— _ never look away  _ —she allowed everything he wanted. She did in the way she felt their genes meeting and parting inside of her. And he went limp in her arms and she held him close. They both tried to breathe again, to become aware again of reality and time and the restroom of a Japanese restaurant where they weren’t supposed to fuck but somewhat did regardless.

His uniform was torn around him. She was a mess herself, but none of it mattered. Rey brushed her fingers on his cheek, gently, easing them out of their orgasm.

“Was it good?”

A flash of incredulity passed in his deep brown eyes.

“You’re kidding, right?” he managed to gasp.

Rey let out a low sound of laughter, a malicious smile over her red lips.

“I don’t know. I wanna make sure you have a nice memory to bring with you out there. Maybe it’ll make you come back sooner.”

Because they were still so close and intertwined, she could feel the shiver of his body in reaction to her words. She didn’t want to part with him, not yet.

“You want me to come back to y— _ here  _ ?” he corrected last second, uncertain.

“There is a lot you haven’t seen in New York City.”

“I think I saw the best part,” Ben whispered before kissing her again.

She returned it, making sure to forge the memory inside of her brain for a long, long time. Somehow they weren’t strangers anymore, just for tonight. Just for a while. Maybe longer, if she could find him back, make him come back to her once again—to the man he was tonight, to her arms. Under different skies, but under the same stars.

“You never answered, though.”

“What?” Ben blinked, looking back into her eyes.

“Can I come to meet Flip tomorrow?”

Something warm and pleasant illuminated his handsome face, moving the grime and the cold away from him.

“I don’t know… I might get jealous if you love my dog more than me.”

“Maybe you should kiss me one more time then,” Rey smiled at him. “Just to make sure you still win.”

**Author's Note:**

> I've been literally obsessed with that [song](https://youtu.be/NWJE52G6mXo) since halflingmerry made me discovered it so, yeah! Heavily inspired from it.
> 
> Also, if you like Captain Solo, go read [WAR DOGS](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17419058/chapters/41004212), there is more Flip for you ;)


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